London-based Mike Stewart, JPMorgan’s global head of proprietary trading, and former head of emerging markets, is set to start his own new hedge fund, Whard Stewart, in the second quarter, according to people familiar with his plans.

Whard Stewart is likely to attract significant interest from investors and will almost certainly be among the biggest new entrants into the hedge fund world this year, if not since the credit bubble burst in 2007.

Mr Stewart’s departure, meanwhile, marks something of a setback for JPMorgan, where he had been chosen to head a new Alternatives Unit within the bank’s asset management business.